An NHS worker defrauded a leading cancer hospital out of more than £640,000 and spent the money meant for life-saving drugs on Gucci handbags and her wedding, a court heard.

Stacey Tipler, 32, is accused of exploiting her position in the accounts department of the Royal Marsden Hospital Trust in London to alter invoices and divert £642,827.98 that should have been paid to the hospital’s suppliers.

Tipler changed the bank details of genuine suppliers for the hospital, one of the world's top cancer units, to a group of people recruited by her 33-year-old fiancé Scott Chaplin, Southwark Crown Court was told.

Hospital: Stacey Tipler had worked in the accounts department of the Royal Marsden Hospital (pictured)

It is alleged that once the money had been transferred it was then withdrawn and split among gang members, with Tipler using her share to buy Gucci handbags and a model helicopter, as well as clear debts and funder her wedding.

However, she was arrested a year before her big day and investigators only managed to claw back slightly more than half of the stolen money.

Today Tipler and Chaplin appeared in the dock alongside Aiden Butcher, Steven Rico and Danielle Flynn, who is alleged to have agreed with Chaplin to have the money paid into their accounts.

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Six other men, Clinton Woolery, Thomas Quinlan, William Flynn, Russell Baker, Roy Harriott and Adrian Horan, have already pleaded guilty to being involved in a fraud.

'The real shame of this case is the defendants spent money that should have gone on cancer drugs on model helicopters and Gucci,' said Stephen Hopper, prosecuting.

'This is a very straightforward case. Stacey Tipler exploited her access to the Trust’s computerised payment system, Agressos, in order to divert funds that should have been paid to suppliers to a series of bank accents controlled by other defendants.

'She achieved this simply by removing the bank details on the Agressos system for a number of the Trust’s suppliers and replacing those details, temporarily, with the bank account details of one of the other defendants.

'In this way a total of £642,827.98 was diverted to six different accounts controlled by people known either to her or her partner.

Accused: Southwark Crown Court was told that Tipler changed the bank details of suppliers for the hospital, one of the world's top cancer units, to a group of people recruited by her 33-year-old fiancé Scott Chaplin

'Some of the diverted money was recovered but £310,857.86 remains unaccounted for.

'The prosecution allege Tipler could not have acted alone. She entered into an agreement with others to carry out the fraud.

'She agreed to carry out the necessary changes to the Trust’s system and the others agreed to let their bank accounts be used for the diversion, knowing that the use of their accounts was an integral part of a fraud against the Royal Marsden.'

Mr Hopper said the defendants then laundered the money by withdrawing it from the accounts as cash or banker’s cheques and then paying it into other accounts belonging to Tipler, Chaplin and their co-conspirators.

Butcher allowed his account to be used to receive a £25,000 cheque and a £20,000 banker’s draft from Horan and Quinlan, which he then withdrew in cash, the court heard.

Mr Hopper added: 'This represents laundering of criminal funds and was of great assistance to the main conspirators as it allowed the to remove large amounts of money from the accounts in one go.'

The money was diverted from Alliance Pharmaceuticals, Hospira Aseptic Services, Baxter Healthcare Ltd, Alliance Healthcare and AAH Pharmaceutical Ltd between December 2011 and May 2012.

The prosecution said Tipler covered her tracks by placing false descriptions in the Agresso system and changing invoice details.

In April, the payment system was outsourced to NHS Shared Business Service, meaning Tipley lost control of it.

However, money continued to be diverted to Woollery and William Flynn meaning a total of £300,000 was lost.

Tipley of Carshalton, Surrey, was arrested in May 2012 after an employee of Alliance Healthcare told the NHS that the company had received two remittance slips, but no payment to go with them.

Mr Hopper added: 'Tipler first made a straightforward denial. She was interviewed again in August, by which stage the full scale of the fraud had been uncovered.

'She now admitted to changing all the bank details in order to divert payments but claimed to have done so as a result of being threatened by Horan and Woollery.'

'She also believed (William) Flynn had attacked Chaplin in order to place pressure on her to carry out the fraud.

'The prosecution’s case it that this duress defence has been created by Tipler with Chaplain’s help.

'The Crown does not accept there was any duress on either side. All the defendants were fully aware of the mechanism of the fraud and all knowingly participated.'

He added: 'Tipler and Chaplin had acquired a substantial level of personal debt. At the time she was first interviewed she believed she owed £30,000. She and Chaplin planned to get married in May 2013 and had begun to pay for the wedding.'